"Take my yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:29)

Friday, June 6, 2014

I Believe in God, But Does He Believe in Me?

I tried an experiment. How would scripture sound if I substituted my name in place of pronouns where Paul was addressing the church? Personally, I love it! It let's me know with more certainty that where the church is referenced, God is also speaking to me. Try it! Does it fit?Here's my personalized result (And capitalized pronouns that refer to God) from Ephesians 1:1-23 ESV...

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To Dwight who is in New Jersey, and is faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to Dwight and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed Dwight in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose Dwight in Him before the foundation of the world, that Dwight should be holy and blameless before Him.

In love He predestined Dwight for adoption as a son through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed Dwight in the Beloved.

In Him, Dwight has redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of his trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon Dwight, in all wisdom and insight making known to Dwight the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.

In Him, Dwight has obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory.

In Him, Dwight also, when he heard the word of truth, the gospel of his salvation, and believed in Him, was sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of Dwight's inheritance until he acquires possession of it, to the praise of His glory.

For this reason, because I have heard of Dwight's faith in the Lord Jesus and Dwight's love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for Dwight, remembering Dwight in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give Dwight the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of his heart enlightened, that Dwight may know what is the hope to which He has called Dwight, what are the riches of Dwight's glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward Dwight who believes, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

1 comment:

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To Steve who is in New York, and is faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to Steve and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed Steve in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose Steve in Him before the foundation of the world, that Steve should be holy and blameless before Him.

In love He predestined Steve for adoption as a son through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed Steve in the Beloved.

In Him, Steve has redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of his trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon Steve, in all wisdom and insight making known to Steve the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.

In Him, Steve has obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory.

In Him, Steve also, when he heard the word of truth, the gospel of his salvation, and believed in Him, was sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of Steve's inheritance until he acquires possession of it, to the praise of His glory.

For this reason, because I have heard of Steve's faith in the Lord Jesus and Steve's love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for Steve, remembering Steve in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give Steve the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of his heart enlightened, that Steve may know what is the hope to which He has called Steve, what are the riches of Steve's glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward Steve who believes, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

About Me

I believe God wants all people to be saved and come to the full knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4). I believe God rewards those who diligently seek Him (Heb 11:6). For me, that meant questioning why I believed what I did. I'd like to share some of the various lessons I've learned in my life. I'm confident that He works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28). I believe it is our responsibility to seek to know Him on His terms, because He wants us to know Him deeply. I believe that is the purpose for which He has called us to be Christians. Thank you for reading, feel free to comment, and may God bless you!